The National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) announced yesterday that it started an investigation into the death of the suspected killer of Ombudsman Assistant Special Prosecutor Madonna Joy Ednaco-Tanyag.
Angelito Avenido Jr., 31, was about to be transferred from Camp Karingal to Quezon City Jail last Saturday when he allegedly grabbed the gun of his police escort, Police Officer 2 Ramil Langa. The gun, however, went off during their scuffle, hitting the suspect in the jaw that led to his death.
“The investigation will not come from the QCPD [Quezon City Police District], it would be with us. I have ordered our Regional Investigation and Detective Management Division (RIDMD) to look into this incident,” said NCRPO Director Guillermo Eleazar.
Eleazar said he initially could not see any irregularity in Avenido’s death even if initial reports indicated that the suspect was not handcuffed when the incident happened.
“If a suspect really has a motive [to escape], then it cannot be avoided. Not all the time the escorts could watch for them although this is part of the protocol,” Eleazar explained.
Under Section 20.3 (d) of the revised PNP Operational Procedures, it says: “In no case shall a high-risk detention prisoner be transported without proper escort and handcuffs.”
In a separate press briefing at Camp Crame, QCPD Director Joselito Esquivel defended his men and maintained that Avenido was the one at fault since he tried to escape.
“This guy killed an assistant special prosecutor of the Ombudsman who was five-months pregnant. It so happened during the process that he reached for a gun and they went for a scuffle,” Esquivel said.
On the other hand, the QCPD chief said they would be ready for any result of the investigation being handled by the NCRPO.
Tanyag was stabbed dead by a lone suspect on June 4 in Quezon City in what was seen as a case of robbery. Several hours later, cops arrested Avenido whom they tagged as the culprit. (Martin A. Sadongdong)
